Scan the heatmap across a row to see what kinds of occupations the holders of a particular degree are more or less likely to end up in. Or scan the heatmap down a column to see which degree holders are more or less likely to work in that occupation. Scrolling over a point in those categories will display the percentage of relevant degree holders in that category. The legend on the right shows you what percentages each color indicates.

While the variations among degrees is informative, perhaps more informative still is the broad similarity the heatmap presents among degrees and career paths. The most significant color variation happens across columns rather than across rows. In other words, there are jobs that holders of college degrees as a whole are more or less likely to hold, rather than sharp differences among holders of different kinds college degrees. As we say at Mason, a major is not a career!

The heatmap uses occupational categories and groupings defined by the US Census Bureau with the exception of "Environmental, Manual Labor, Transportation and Maintenance," which combines the following categories: Buildings and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance, Farming, Fishing, and Forestry; Construction and Extraction; Extraction Workers; Installation, Maintenance, and Repair; Production Occupations; and Transportation and Material Moving. In addition, some of the other Census category names have been shortened. For the full list see https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/c2ssoccup.shtml. We use these ages to show where majors end up, rather than initial jobs out of college. Note, however, that these percentages are a snapshot of people at different career stages.

Source: American Community Survey, 2010-2012. Data includes holders of baccalaureate degrees or higher, ages 26-67.